How to Save Money on Your Marketing

It can be expensive to set up and run a business, especially when you’re starting out. One of the areas many holistic practitioners try and save money is on their marketing, often doing the activities themselves rather than outsourcing them.

Whilst I understand the need to keep costs to a minimum, there are huge benefits to employing a professional to do your marketing projects. This will save you time and money in the long run and give you better results than doing it yourself.

Consider if you want medicinal herbs, why you’d go to a herbalist rather than your local Holland and Barrett shop? If you had a stiff neck, why would you go to an Osteopath instead of buying a shiatsu massage cushion? It’s because you want expert help and you recognise it's how you'll achieve the best results – it’s the same with your marketing.

But, if you need to do your own marketing for now, here are a few ways you can save money and get good results.

Branding

I created a series of 3 blogs and podcasts called branding on a budget. They walk you through how to create a consistent look for your business at a fraction of the cost of hiring a designer.

• How to pick your brand colours and fonts
• How to take great profile photos
• How to find your brand voice

Copywriting

Copywriting is an important skill that supports many of your marketing efforts. I reviewed many of the lessons I’ve learnt over the years and compiled a list of steps to follow to help you write your copy in this blog: simple copywriting for your holistic business

Email list

If you’re building an email list for your business, you need to do it through an email provider as they will maintain the list and keep you compliant with GDPR.

To get you started, many providers offer free accounts which will allow you to send newsletters and do simple automation. The main providers my clients use are:

• Mailchimp
• Mailerlite 

Google Business Profile

This is a must for your holistic business if you want an online presence, even if you don’t have a website. Google My Business is a free tool that provides you with a business listing that integrates with the Google search engine and maps. Having one allows you to manage how you appear on Google, showcase what you do and show up in searches by potential clients. Check out my blog on how to create a Google Business Profile.

Images and Photographs

Any photos you use in your marketing must be royalty free or you could fall foul of copyright laws. Just because there is an image on the internet, does not mean it’s available to use.

You can get good quality, royalty-free images to use in your marketing from Pixabay. Images are free of charge, or you can buy the photographer a ‘virtual coffee’ if you wish. It’s also a place you can give back by sharing your amazing photos with other members.

Canva also has a range of images in the free version of their software, and you can adapt and personalise them by adding text or other elements. They provide different templates and layouts that you can edit to create your own artwork.

If you’re creating a lot of different artwork, I recommend upgrading to the professional version of Canva which will give you access to many more features and you can create all sorts of artwork from social media posts, to slide shows and brochures (and videos) using it.

Printing

Printing used to be a huge cost for any small business but with changes in technology, it is much, much more affordable. If you decide to produce leaflets or need anything else printed, you’ll probably find you’ll get the best deals online unless you’re buying a lot of printed materials (and by this, I mean spending £000s).

I use Solopress and they will send you a free sample pack of different papers and finishes which is great to keep for reference. Order yours here.

For any print you require, it is worth shopping around and making sure you get the best price – I recommend getting three prices as they can vary substantially. Start by writing out a full description of what you want (size, number of pages, colours, paper, finishing, delivery etc.) and make sure everyone is quoting for exactly the same thing, so you get a like-for-like cost.

Social Media

Love it or hate it, social media is a good option to market your holistic business if you don’t have a big budget. A word of warning though, it’s a long-term marketing strategy and you need to spend time and energy on it to grow your audience and discover what works and what doesn’t.

If you’re just starting out with your business on social media, keep it simple and get to know one platform well rather than trying to do all of them. Pick one you know your ideal clients use and start being sociable on it.

• Here’s a podcast interview with Helen Perry on how to use Instagram to find clients.
• And another podcast interview with Megan Kuhar on where to start with social media to find clients.

Video

Video is dominating online and with smartphones, you have all the technology you need to start creating videos.

Video is the best way (other than in person) for people to get a sense of you and your style. A potential client will see and hear you and it helps them work out if you’re a good fit for them.

Movement in video catches people’s attention both on social media and on your website so it’s one of the best ways to stand out online. Videos uploaded to social media are distributed further than an image or copy and so your efforts will work harder for you.

Here’s a blog on how to create videos for your holistic business.

Website

Before you start building a website, know this is a big commitment and it’s something that will take time to create and need to be consistently maintained. Depending on your business and marketing plans, you may find a Google Business Profile is all you need to start with.

Technology has given us the ability to create great websites for our small businesses using templated systems. Unless you're confident in how to design and write a website, professional help will pay dividends.

If you decide to do your own website, check out the Online Marketing for Busy Website Owners podcast by Vicki Jakes who is my go-to person for all things websites. 

The 2 main platforms I recommend to my clients are:

• WordPress site – this has been the main platform online and used by many professionals for years. You can learn how to build this yourself through memberships, courses, YouTube videos and books.
• Square Space is a templated website system that is used by many of my clients and can produce great-looking websites.

Basically, keep your marketing simple and get the foundations in place. Having a strategy outlined and a plan of action so you’re structured around what you do will also save time and money. This is where I can help you – if this sounds interesting, book a call and let's talk.